1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to handrails.
2. Description of the Prior Art
At the present time handrails are used for a variety of purposes. Their principal purpose, of course, is to provide a handhold for persons walking or climbing nearby. When used for this purpose, the handrail must be firmly mounted to provide an easily grasped and rigid support. Various handrail systems ranging from simple wooden sections to metal or rubber sections have been used quite satisfactorily for these purposes.
In many situations, however, such simple handrails have not proved satisfactory. For example, in hospitals, nursing homes and similar institutions, handrails are often provided along walls and in certain rooms and these handrails are quickly damaged. When in this type of use, the handrail is subject to a great deal of abuse. Moving equipment such as food carts, rolling beds, large pieces of test apparatus and the like often come into contact with the handrail as the equipment is moved. This can cause the handrail to be dented, damaged and perhaps even weakened to the point where it provides a dangerous support to those who might rely on them. As can be seen, handrails used in this environment must therefore be not only a rigid support, but also an impact resistant and resilient guard for the wall. U.S. Pat. No. 3,825,229 to Bartlett shows a handrail designed to be used in such an environment. The handrail of Bartlett is comprised of an inner retainer of extruded aluminum which supports an outer trim piece of resilient plastic. These pieces are of uniform cross section and so can be easily extruded. The trim piece of Bartlett is shaped and positioned on the retainer such that the medial portion of the trim piece can flex inwardly toward the medial portion of the retainer, thereby providing a resilient impact surface on the front of the handrail. This protects the aluminum retainer from being damaged by some horizontal impacts. The uppermost part of the trim piece of the Bartlett handrail forms a handgrip area. This area of the trim piece has a convexly curved shape. The Bartlett patent states that this handgrip area must be substantially rigid. This is achieved by the aluminum retainer having a matingly convexly curved portion which supports the major part of the handgrip from underneath.
Thus, the Bartlett patent requires that both the trim piece and the retainer have a convexly curved handgrip portion. Bartlett further requires that the curved portion of the retainer must be outwardly convexly curved. It is assumed that this outward curving is to allow the medial portion of the retainer more room for inward flexing of the trim piece.
While the Bartlett invention provides a handrail which is substantially improved over a wooden handrail, several disadvantages remain. For one, the convexly curved shape of the retainer uses a substantial amount of material for the support of the handgrip part of the trim piece. This material is not only expensive, but also a hinderance, in that too much rigidity is provided in the handgrip portion. Thus, a substantial blow to any portion of the upper part of a Bartlett handrail transmits much or all of the force to the mounting supports rather than being absorbed by the flex of the trim piece. This can cause either the mounting or the handrail to be damaged. This much rigidity is not required to provide a safe support.
When used in hospitals or nursing homes, it is also important that a handrail be easily cleaned and present a neat appearance. If not easily cleaned, the handrail may be a source of continual contamination to staff and patients who use the handrail. For this reason, it is important to have a handrail which is relatively free from dirt and germ traps. In the Bartlett patent, however, two significant such traps are created at the points where the trim piece joins the retainer. At these points, a groove is created which would be very difficult to clean once dirt or the like were wedged in these grooves. These grooves can also become sticky and unpleasant if a liquid, such as a soft drink or the like, is spilled on the handrail and the sticky substance flows into the grooves. Additionally, these grooves can cause pinched fingers if the finger is in a groove when the trim piece flexes. This unsanitary and unpleasant condition is a significant disadvantage of the Bartlett handrail.
Yet another problem with the Bartlett invention has been ending and turning of the rails. Since the extruded retainer and trim piece are of uniform cross section, the Bartlett handrail must have a special end piece for closing the exposed ends. The end piece shown by Bartlett is an insert which mates with the interior of the end of the rail. This end piece, however, is not satisfactory since the necessity of insertion prevents one of these end pieces from being used to join two parts of a handrail around a corner. Furthermore, the end piece must be shaped to very close tolerances to allow the snug insertion necessary to provide a firm support of the end piece. Finally, it can be seen that the end piece of Bartlett is a complex piece and must therefore be relatively expensive.